Golden Gophers – Page 84 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Vikes Can’t Obsess on First Round CB

Posted on April 26, 2022April 26, 2022 by David Shama

What will the Vikings do Thursday night in the first round of the NFL Draft?

Former Vikings GM Jeff Diamond offered advice in a Monday interview with Sports Headliners. “If they are wise, you don’t want to get locked into a certain position of need which we all know is a corner for them.”

Diamond, the NFL Executive of the Year in 1998 when the Vikings went 15-1, learned long ago that “especially in the first round” it’s not prudent to become overly focused on need at a particular position. Unless a team is after a quarterback, take the best player available, he said. Don’t pass on a great player and settle for a good one to fulfill a need.

Diamond, who learned that philosophy from Bud Grant, Jerry Reichow and Frank Gilliam from the Vikings, was president of the Titans after he left Minnesota. With both organizations he believed there are limited opportunities to select a player who was all but certain to become a Pro Bowl level talent. “We always felt there were eight to 10 blue chip players in every draft,” he said.

The Vikings have several needs going into this week’s three-day, seven-round draft. They could, for example, benefit from taking an edge rusher at No. 12. Sports Illustrated’s mock draft has Minnesota selecting Eden Prairie High School and Florida State alum Jermaine Johnson.

Diamond sees Johnson as a top four prospect among edge rushers in this year’s draft. “I think that he’s a guy that has got a lot of talent. I think he runs well and has good effort and all that.”

With the new Vikings’ 3-4 defensive scheme, and injury uncertain for veteran pass rushers Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith, the franchise could benefit from selecting an edge rusher in the first round and then choosing cornerbacks in the second and later rounds. Diamond suggests the club might follow that path and use the third round pick for a quarterback to compete with backup Kellen Mond (2021 draft).

Diamond describes it as “good strategy” to take a quarterback prospect in the third round. He doesn’t see the position as one of immediate need and rates veteran Kirk Cousins in the 10 to 15 range among NFL quarterbacks. With Cousins flanked by outstanding playmakers, and if the defense is upgraded, the Vikings can be a winner, Diamond said.

That’s not to say, though, the Vikings couldn’t improve their offense in the draft with a center, guard or tackle who is able to push existing starters or provide depth. With Tyler Conklin having been traded, and starter Irv Smith coming off a knee injury, Diamond sees the importance of adding a pass catching tight end in the later rounds.

Rounds four through seven may provide roster help at wide receiver, and multiple spots on defense including linebacker and safety. The Vikings are talented at wide receiver with their starters but adding a contributor in the draft can provide depth. “There’s a lot of talent at wide receiver this year (in the draft),” Diamond said.

This will be Kwesi Odofo-Mensah’s first draft as a general manager. Diamond’s guess is the Vikings won’t be wheeling-and-dealing during the draft and likely will retain most or all of their eight picks. He’s not an advocate of parting with your first round selection and not selecting a player until the second round.

“I am always apprehensive about trading out of the first round,” Diamond said. “A couple of occasions that we did it, it really didn’t pay off.”

This year eight franchises have multiple first round selections, meaning eight do not. Diamond can’t recall that circumstance before. The numbers could lead to trades involving both the 2022 or 2023 drafts.

Among the many players Diamond is following are former Gophers Boye Mafe and Daniel Faalele. Mafe has created unexpected offseason buzz as a potential elite edge rusher and has drawn late first round or second round speculation. Faalele, the 6-8, 384 pound offensive tackle, has prompted similar talk but Diamond said there is concern about the Australian native staying under 400 pounds.

Diamond is a senior consultant for the Minneapolis-based Institute for Athletes, an established agency representing players. He is involved with recruiting and is familiar with many prospects for the 2022 NFL Draft.

Worth Noting

Diamond talking about the lengthy three-day draft: “To me the first couple rounds, (are) really fun to watch. Rounds four through seven a little tedious. And I kind of felt that way even as a GM and in the draft room because it gets so long and a little bit boring at times. …”

In Sports Illustrated’s mock draft top cornerbacks Derek Stingley Jr., Ahmad Gardner and Trent McDuffie will be selected No. 7, 10 and 11 respectively. At No. 24 in the first round the prediction is the Cowboys will choose Mafe.

Rocco Baldelli, the 2019 American League Manager of the Year, is criticized for game strategy but a move paying off this spring is batting Byron Buxton lead-off where he can often have more plate appearances than hitting further down in the order. He was in position to win Sunday’s extra inning game against the White Sox and did so with a three-run home run that put the Twins in first place in the AL Central Division.

Inspiring to see 100-year-old former Gophers’ ticket manager Tom Swain and Vikings legend Bud Grant, who turns 95 next month, in attendance at the Twin Cities Dunker Fund Dinner at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Who will be the Wild’s starting goalie in the first game of the playoffs next week? There could be a goalie controversy in the postseason but the guess here is Cam Talbot gets the first start over Marc-Andre Fleury. Remember when the Wild made the 2003 Western Conference Finals using goalies Dwayne Roloson and Manny Fernandez?

Wild home single game playoff tickets go on sale tomorrow at 2 p.m. via www.ticketmaster.com

The Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov, the NHL Rookie of the Year in 2021, turns 25 today.

Former Gopher footballer and ex-pro wrestling star Jumpin’ Jim Brunzell emailed about whether Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson will be a hero or heel in the WWE. “Dave, I’ve never met Gabe but because of his size and cockiness I believe he’ll be a natural heel or bad guy! If they decide to make him a baby-face, or good guy, he’ll be a Hulk Hogan type who’ll out wrestle his opponent. And when his opponent fouls Gabe, he’ll make a big comeback and pin him with some suplex for the cover! Who knows?”

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D’Lo Due to Lift Wolves’ Offense

Posted on April 20, 2022April 20, 2022 by David Shama

“Mr. Inconsistent,” D’Angelo Russell, just might give the Timberwolves the scoring lift they need tomorrow night to pull back ahead of the Grizzlies in the first round NBA playoff series tied at 1-1.

The Wolves ‘enigmatic guard averaged 31 points against the Grizzlies in four regular season games. But in the first two playoff games he is averaging 10.5, converting 22.7 percent of his field goal attempts. That’s a big contrast from the 19.4 points he averaged in five games for the Nets in the 2018-2019 playoffs.

After last night’s 124-96 blowout loss to the Grizzlies,Wolves coach Chris Finch acknowledged his offense let him down. The switching and pesky Memphis defense bothered all the Wolves including Russell. Finch suggested his players can make adjustments including better ball movement to find open teammates.

The Grizzlies are among the NBA’s highest scoring teams and totaled 117 points in their loss to the Wolves Saturday. Minnesota is going to need more offense than producing 96 points to keep the series competitive. Russell must step up starting tomorrow night at Target Center.

Finch said the Wolves need to get him better looks at the basket but D’Lo can also be more decisive with his shot selection. It’s not like big games are too challenging for the 6-4 guard. Just last week in the team’s Play-in-Tournament win over the Clippers he scored 29, while making 10 of 18 shots. Part of the Wolves’ big three all season, Russell complemented Anthony Edwards who scored 30 points and both players helped make up for a dismal 11 point, foul plagued performance by Karl-Anthony Towns.

A peaks-and-valleys career performer, Russell is now with his fourth NBA team in seven seasons. He’s been in the valley against the Grizzlies in Memphis but maybe he can climb the mountain in Minneapolis with games Thursday and Saturday night.

Worth Noting

Minnetonka administrators made a savvy hire this week with the appointment of Brian Cosgriff as the Skippers’ girls basketball coach. Before retiring in 2020, the high character coach won seven Minnesota state championships at Hopkins, with a career record of 569-67.

Eric Musselman, who the Gophers likely could have hired on two occasions during the last 10 years, has his Arkansas basketball team drawing top five mentions for best team in the country next season. Musselman’s 2022 recruiting class is No. 2 in the nation, per 247Sports.

Gophers quarterback Tanner Morgan, a starter since 2018, is effusive about the return of offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca, who mentored him from 2017-2019. “I have known him for a long time, and obviously he means a lot to me,” Morgan said.

Morgan, 27-12 as a starter and the winningest quarterback in program history, said that as a 17-year-old he was “terrified” of Ciarrocca. “When I first got here I was afraid to make mistakes and stuff like that. That relationship is awesome (now) and I am very thankful that he came back.”

Indications are the aggressive passing game—including slant patterns—that the Gophers had so much success with under Ciarrocca in 2019 will return in 2022. Wide receivers Chris Autman–Bell and Dylan Wright will likely be frequent targets, with opportunities, too, for tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford. Prediction here is 30-35 receptions and four-five touchdown catches next season for the talented Spann-Ford who was under utilized last year.

Autman-Bell talking about promising Western Kentucky and Abilene Christian cornerback transfers Beanie Bishop and Ryan Stapp who he faces in practice: “Those guys are going to be ballplayers for the Gopher Nation. …I got nothing but love for them.”

Starting linebacker and team leader Mariano Sori-Marin talking about the progress of the defense this spring: “I’ve just been really excited about how tough (physical) we’ve been playing.”

Barry Mayer, who led the University of Minnesota in rushing in 1969 and 1970, chuckled over a conversation he had with a current Gopher at practice on Saturday. Today’s players like to wear their football pants, including knee pads, close to mid-thigh. Mayer suggested to the Gopher that knee pads should cover knees. “He looked at me and said, ‘Not in this generation.’ “

ESPN.com’s Jeff Legwold wrote earlier this week former Gopher tackle Daniel Faalele will be the biggest player in the upcoming NFL Draft at 6-8, 384 pounds. Legwold reported Faalele said at the NFL Combine he weighed 426 pounds in his early days at Minnesota. The Australian native is one of the biggest NFL prospects ever and could be drafted in the second or third round.

I am feeling confident about predictions after the Timberwolves went 46-36 in the regular season (forecast 45 wins). Here’s a guess on the Twins’ final record: 76-86.

The MLB Morning Lineup email newsletter has the Twins No. 19 in its power rankings. The Dodgers, who swept the Twins in Minneapolis, are No. 1 in the listings—with Minnesota’s division rivals ranked like this: White Sox, No. 3; Guardians, No. 14; Tigers, No. 17; and Royals, No. 25.

Trivia buff John Justice from Edina points out Highland Park High School in the Dallas area has amazing sports alums including Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw who no- hit the Twins last week over seven innings and helped his team become 2020 World Series champs. Other famous names are 2022 Masters winner Scottie Scheffler, 2022 Super Bowl winning quarterback Matthew Stafford and football immortal Doak Walker.

Minneapolis attorney Marshall Tanick will talk about “Law and Lore of Baseball in Minnesota” on Thursday at the Dakota County Law Library. He is a long time observer of sports and law in the state, including the historic attempt to contract the Twins in 2001. Tanick is a former sportswriter at the University of Minnesota and a Stanford law school graduate.

The CORES luncheon group welcomes Gregg Wong as its guest speaker May 12 at the Bloomington Event Center. The Minneapolis native is a former sportswriter for the Pioneer Press who covered the Gophers and Minnesota’s pro teams, and reported from two Olympics. Reservations must be made by May 9. For more information contact Jim Dotseth: dotsethj@comcast.net. CORES is an acronym for coaches, officials, reporters, educators and sports fans.

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U Secondary May Rank with Best

Posted on April 17, 2022April 17, 2022 by David Shama

The football Golden Gophers are about halfway through spring practices. At this point there is a lot to like about the defensive secondary.

Veteran starting linebacker and team leader Mariano Sori-Marin was asked after practice yesterday if the secondary will be among the best in the Big Ten Conference next fall. In his answer he went beyond the Big Ten.

“Their expectation is they’re going to be one of the best secondaries in the country, and they know that, and you can see that in the way they work,” Sori-Marin said. “The way they communicate with each other. Just the way they practice. That’s one thing about that group that flies off the tape is the way they practice.”

Conversations about individuals in the secondary can begin with Tyler Nubin. He was honorable mention All-Big Ten last season and defensive MVP at the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in December when the Gophers defeated West Virginia. He has already lettered three times at Minnesota and he led the team in interceptions in 2021 and was third in tackles. Sori-Marin describes Nubin as a fly-around-the-field safety and “vocal leader.”

Other returning starters in the secondary are safety Jordan Howden and corner Justin Walley. Howden has played in 45 games at Minnesota and will forever be remembered by Gopher fans for his late game interception in 2019 against No. 5 ranked Penn State. He has been named Academic All-Big Ten the last three seasons.

As a freshman last year Walley played in all 13 games and started the final six. The former Mississippi Mr. Football was named to the 247Sports True Freshman All-American team. He and Nubin are certain to be candidates for All-Big Ten next fall.

The Gophers have a cornerback spot to fill but candidates to become the starter have experience and skills. Transfers Beanie Bishop and Ryan Stapp have impressed at spring practice. Bishop was an All-USA Conference selection at Western Kentucky, while Stapp is highly regarded, too, after three seasons at Abilene Christian.

Terrell Smith is a four year letter winner for the Gophers and started seven games last season. He also was Academic All-Big Ten in 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Minnesota had one of the most effective defenses in the nation last season including against the passing game. The Gophers gave up 1,812 passing yards, ranking No. 8 in the nation.

While there are plenty of personnel questions to be answered before next season regarding the defensive line and the linebacker roster, Sori-Marin sees the whole unit’s overall potential. “There’s just so much speed and athleticism in this defense,” said Sori-Marin who earned All Big Ten Honorable Mention in 2021. “There’s so much we can do but we just have to focus on the details. There’s one thing to say we can do all these things—but if you’re not focusing on the details, or the basics, we can’t take it to the next level.”

The Gophers’ secondary looks poised to do more than its share and could be ready to be one of the best in school history.

Will WWE Make Steveson a Hero or Villain?

Olympic gold medalist and college national championship wrester Gable Steveson is a hero and role model. So when the Golden Gophers and Apple Valley legend makes his pro wrestling debut he will, of course, be a good guy, right?

Well, not so fast pro rassling fans. Apparently the script has yet to be written.

“…If I turn bad guy, then I am fine,” Steveson told Sports Headliners. “If I turn good, then that will be good.”

Steveson signed a Name, Image and Likeness deal with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) last year but the date for his first match is TBD. “I have no clue,” he said. “Whenever they tell me.”

Steveson is likeable, a charmer when he talks to individuals and groups. When those first WWE matches start coming in late spring or early summer his followers may expect to see their hero in a “white hat,” but the shtick in pro rasslin’ is all about creativity and surprises.

Beyond a pro wrestling career, Steveson acknowledges interest in mixed martial arts and perhaps one day fighting for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) enterprise. That was a path taken by another former Gopher wrestling legend, Brock Lesnar, whose WWE and UFC story Steveson is familiar with.

The winner of the heavyweight championship at the 2021 Olympics, Steveson also won two NCAA titles and three Big Ten championships during his storied career. Monday night at the Golden Goldys event he will learn whether he has added yet another prestigious title, the Big Ten Medal of Honor.

The medal is awarded annually to the top female and male student-athletes at each conference institution. Steveson, along with Blaise Andries (football) and Alec Basten (men’s cross country) are Minnesota’s three male finalists. Minnesota’s female nominees are Bethan Hasz (women’s cross country and track), Lexy Ramler (gymnastics) and Stephanie Samedy (volleyball).

The award dates back to 1915 when it debuted to recognize individuals who had “attained the greatest proficiency in athletics and scholastic work.” Twenty-eight student-athletes will be recognized this year and more than 1,300 have earned the honor.

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